Spondyloenchondromatosis with D-2-hydroxyglutaric aciduria: a report of a second patient with this unusual combination

Spondyloenchondromatosis (SEM) is a rare skeletal dysplasia which presents with multiple enchondromata in the metaphyses of the long bones associated with dysplastic vertebral bodies. It is probably heterogeneous. We have investigated and documented a male infant in South Africa with spondyloenchondromatosis and persistent D-2-hydroxyglutaric aciduria (D2HA). D2HA is a neurometabolic disorder whose enzymatic basis is still undefined. A girl in England with a similar clinical, radiological and biochemical phenotype has previously been reported by Talkhani et al. [(2000). Skel Radiol 7:215-2921]. There is at present a lack of a plausible pathogenetic relationship between the two components of the disorder but a contiguous gene syndrome or a pleiotropic gene could be considered. Whatever the underlying mechanism this case report confirms its nosological entity.